how to juggle tax considerations for partner retirement benefits

senior executive in home office with two monitors and keyboard on leather desk and looking at paperwork on deskminimizing self-employment taxes is desirable but tricky.

by marc rosenberg
retirements & buyouts

the income tax aspect of practice management issues is an area of my consulting practice in which i have knowledge, but i wouldn’t call it “expertise.” so i sought the counsel of an expert – jeff arnol, cpa, managing partner of kessler, orlean, silver & company in chicago. the information presented here is based on my 20+ years of experience of working with cpa firms on partner retirement plans, liberally supplemented by arnol’s input.

more on partner retirements: two ways to retire, and one’s not pretty | mandatory retirement varies by firm size | mandatory retirement? 4 reasons the firm comes first | how to transition clients from retiring partners | you want goodwill payments? give proper retirement notice | retirement vesting: the devil’s in the details | compromise is in order for some goodwill payouts | three ways to calculate goodwill payable in partner buyouts, none of them great | 5 points to consider when paying out goodwill | how to set terms and limits for goodwill payouts | partners may balk at guaranteeing retirement obligations

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two ways to retire, and one’s not pretty

older businessman taking a coffee breakthe graceful way to slow down and phase out.

by marc rosenberg
retirements & buyouts

there are two ways that partners slow down as they approach traditional retirement age:

announced – the “cooperative” way to slow down. the partner openly and willingly informs the partners that she wishes to slow down. this change in status is usually related to the retirement process, but some partners who are not retirement-minded may wish to work less than full time in order to pursue other life goals.

more on retirement: mandatory retirement varies by firm size | how to transition clients from retiring partners | retirement plan funding? what funding? | retirement vesting: the devil’s in the details | when retiring partners take a specialty with them | three ways to calculate goodwill payable in partner buyouts, none of them great | the multiple of compensation method, fully explained | clients leaving? time to reduce retirement benefits | partners may balk at guaranteeing retirement obligations

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unannounced – the “uncooperative” way to slow down. in these instances, the partner is either unwilling to cooperate with his partners in working out a sensible, fair phase-down period or is unaware that he needs to phase out of the firm.

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mandatory retirement varies by firm size

senior businesswoman holding portfoliopractices between “large” firms and smaller firms diverge.

by marc rosenberg
retirements & buyouts

as is the case with many aspects of practice management, mandatory retirement is addressed quite differently depending on the size of the firm. here is data from a recent rosenberg map survey:

percent of firms having mandatory retirement policies for partners:

  • 83 percent for firms with annual fees greater than $20 million.
  • 77 percent for firms in the $10 million-20 million range.
  • 56 percent for firms in the $2 million-10 million range.
  • 21 percent for firms with fees less than $2 million.

more on retirement: mandatory retirement? 4 reasons the firm comes first | how to transition clients from retiring partners | you want goodwill payments? give proper retirement notice | retirement plan funding? what funding? | vesting can cover part-timers, too | retirement vesting: the devil’s in the details | compromise is in order for some goodwill payouts | when retiring partners take a specialty with them | if clients leave, do you reduce retirement benefits?

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mandatory retirement? 4 reasons the firm comes first

elderly businessman with hand on door frameand 6 reasons that firms struggle.

by marc rosenberg
retirements & buyouts

at cpa firms, the concept of requiring partners to retire at a certain age has been around for decades. the mandatory requirement policy has its roots in the “one-firm” concept of managing a firm: the interests of the firm should always be more important than the interests of any individual partner.

more on retirement: you want goodwill payments? give proper retirement notice | retirement plan funding? what funding? | compromise is in order for some goodwill payouts | when retiring partners take a specialty with them | if clients leave, do you reduce retirement benefits? | the multiple of compensation method, fully explained | the ins and outs of aav for goodwill | 5 points to consider when paying out goodwill | how to set terms and limits for goodwill payouts | 4 ways to decide how to pay out capital | partners may balk at guaranteeing retirement obligations

why a mandatory retirement policy is good for the firm: read more →

how to transition clients from retiring partners

older businessman shaking hands with businesswoman across deskdon’t make this common but potentially expensive error.

by marc rosenberg
retirements & buyouts

i have done extensive polling of firms in recent years on client transition and offer here some of their practices.

the best transition practice of course falls under the category of “the best way to solve a problem is to never let it happen to begin with.”

more on retirement: retirement plan funding? what funding? | vesting can cover part-timers, too | compromise is in order for some goodwill payouts | when retiring partners take a specialty with them | why you’ll get less from your partners in a buyout than you might by selling the whole firm | eat what you kill? then maybe ‘book of business’ is for you | 5 points to consider when paying out goodwill | clients leaving? time to reduce retirement benefits | 4 ways to decide how to pay out capital | partners may balk at guaranteeing retirement obligations

said one mp: “the ‘transition’ process should start as soon as the firm gets a client (some start even sooner – on the sale pitch). clients should be assigned a team, including a backup partner and a manager. the client should be told who the team members will be. some call this institutionalizing the clients. if you do this, there is very little else that needs to be done when a partner announces his/her retirement.”

some other points: read more →